Star Fox:  Insurrection
by Latyon
Summary: Eleven years after Command, the Venomian Empire defeats Corneria and takes control of Lylat.  Not all hope is lost, however.  A group of veteran pilots forms a rebellion to take back Lylat.  Rated T for language, blood, and some sexual content.
1. The Fix

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Disclaimer: Star Fox belongs to Nintendo, not me. All characters taken from the games belong to them, while original characters are my own creations. The story itself is mine as well, but it takes place in a universe that I do not own. That, my friends, is why it is called fanfiction.

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Note to readers: The first few chapters may seem to jump around a lot. This is because they cover the important events that happen between Command and this story, which is a period of around 17 years. If I could have squeezed it into one chapter, I would have, but let's face it, a lot can happen in 17 years.

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It had been raining for six days straight, but it was only now that the figure in the window really paid any attention to it. Shining lights from outside were distorted in the wet barrier that streamed down the glass, the rapid pelting of water drops drowning out everything else. The figure sighed visibly, reaching one arm up to pull the curtains shut. She was tired of the weather. It reminded her too much of home.

The bed behind her was neatly made, with a large maroon comforter and goose down pillows with matching cases sitting neatly at the top. In her opinion, it was too much. The enormous room, the hot tub and swimming pool, the insane amount of throw pillows sitting in various spots around the room – she didn't need any of it. Even though it was there, she hardly paid attention. She instead chose to sit in the cold window seat and stare out into the sky, into space, where so much had happened in the past few years.

She could hear the squeaking sound as the water control knobs in the bathroom shower were spun, the soft buzzing of the water spraying from the showerhead stopping abruptly. The rain continued on. Through the nearby door, she heard the loud steps of a man's slippers on the hard tile. She sighed again, remembering those slippers from long ago. No matter what she said, she could not seem to get rid of the damned things. They were too loud, she would always say, and once she even tried them on. Not only were they too big, but they felt scratchy and awkward. What that man saw in those shoes, she could never fathom. The towel rod spun around audibly as the man in the bathroom pulled a fluffy pink towel from it, rubbing it over his body. The room was steamed up, yet the mirrors remained remarkably clear. It had been one of the things described in the advertisement, non-fogging mirrors. While it was certainly not a selling point, it was a nice touch now that he could appreciate it.

The fox stopped and looked at himself in the mirror, the towel wrapped around his face. His fur was wet down and looked a much deeper brown than it really was. His toned body was covered with small scars from his past battles, and just looking at himself brought back the memories of everything that had happened since the Academy. One of his fingers traced along the first scar he received in battle, a dogfight with Wolf O'Donnell in Venomian airspace. A shot had hit the starboard side of his Arwing and rocked the entire ship, sending Fox's shoulder into something sharp, something he had never determined. He thought it could have been something from his toolbox, which sat secured next to his seat in the spacecraft and had broken open sometime during that battle. That was right before he had come face to face with Andross, right before he stopped the Lylat War, right before he saw his father.

The other scars told similar, yet less mysterious stories: the mission on Sauria, the Aparoid invasion, and the Anglars, all of them had their stories embedded in Fox's skin forever. None of them felt nearly as special as the one from his first mission.

He moved his hand to the ones from Sauria, of which there were more than other missions. He had spent his time on Sauria on foot, with nothing to defend himself with other than a magic staff that belonged to the love of his life, Krystal. He had not seen that staff since then, but he knew that Krystal kept it with her, somewhere. He moved again to the Aparoid invasion scars, remembering the changes Wolf had experienced in the time between the two incidents. No longer was the man in the employ of Andross, and no longer did the huge enmity between the two exist. Finally, he touched the Anglar scars, where again, James McCloud had appeared to help him. He came closer to the bathroom counter and unfolded the gray T-shirt he had brought with him to change into after his shower. Sitting in the middle was a pair of black sunglasses. He grasped them delicately and put them on, looking into the mirror. It looked as though his father was staring back at him.

_Don't ever give up, my son, _Fox remembered. Those words had been at the front of his mind for eleven years now. He took the sunglasses off and set them down again, looking into his own emerald eyes. He had always been told that he had his mother's eyes, and he desperately wished that he had paid attention to the smaller parts of life when she was still alive. To see his parents again, to let them meet Krystal, to be one big happy family…

His headset began to blink with a blue light and he could hear his wrist communicator ringing in the other room. He put the headset on and pushed the button to answer it. In the other room, Krystal had left the window to see who was calling. She grabbed the small bracelet, an upgrade from the bulky unit she was used to seeing, and looked down at the screen. It was Falco. She took the unit over to the door and was about to knock to tell Fox that he had missed a call, when she heard him talking, almost a whisper; as if he didn't want her to hear it.

"Hey, Falco," he said, and the avian replied.

"Find a solution to your girl problem yet?" the bird asked. Fox tilted his head quizzically, and Krystal stood outside the door, eavesdropping.

"What girl problem?" he asked. In another room of the hotel, Falco's head drooped disappointedly.

"Come on, man, wake up and smell the coffee. It's obvious that Krystal isn't the same. She feels strange about having the team back together again. I mean, you _did _tell her to get lost a couple years ago,"

"I did not tell her to get lost, Falco. I told her that I didn't want her to get hurt," Fox said irritably. Falco could not seem to get this simple little fact through his head.

"Whatever, man, it's the same. But you've noticed, haven't you?" Falco asked, and Fox noticed himself nodding in the mirror.

"Yeah,"

"Well, you aren't just gonna let her go again, are you?" Falco asked, and Fox shook his head.

"I don't know what to do," he responded solemnly. He had tried to ignore what seemed to be true ever since Krystal had rejoined Star Fox, but no matter where they went, it all seemed to catch up to him. He had noticed that Krystal didn't seem to be enjoying the facilities in this hotel, but he had done it all for her. Nothing he did for her seemed to matter.

"Well, you tried the hotel, that didn't work. Maybe … maybe she wants something more from you? Something to show her that you really care for her? Like, I don't know. Don't you want a little cub of your own?" Falco asked. Fox smiled.

"That's perfect, Falco,"

He had never thought about it. His life had just been so full of commotion that the thought of having his own child had never crossed his mind. Yet now seemed like the perfect time. Krystal's interest was peaked, as well, though she could only hear Fox's end of the conversation.

"But how do I know she's ready for a baby?" Fox asked. Krystal gasped and stepped away from the door, nearly dropping the communicator as her hand went up to cover her mouth. She was overwhelmed with an indescribable feeling, mixed with an amount of uncertainty and confusion. A cub of her own? Something for her and Fox to bond over, to rekindle the old flame? Something that might make everything okay between them? But was she ready? She walked further from the door and covered the speaker of the communicator, turning it on. She could now hear both ends of the conversation.

"Bring it up lightly, don't go into detail. Maybe lead a conversation into kids, how you like kids, how someday you want to have a cub, ask her if she ever wants kids, you know. The small stuff. If she says yeah, then you can take it from there. Use the old McCloud charm that I'm sure exists in there somewhere," Falco told Fox, and Fox nodded. Krystal was surprised that of all people, Falco was giving relationship advice, but her mind drifted straight back to thoughts of a baby. Did she want a boy or a girl? What would she name it? What would they look like? There was so much to consider. But she was now sure of it. She wanted a child.

"So go in gradually? What if she says no?"

"Trust me, she won't say no," Falco said. Fox blinked twice.

"Falco, is Katt standing behind you giving you relationship advice to give to me?" he asked. Falco chuckled.

"Of course. I could never come up with that on my own," the bird said. Krystal understood now. Woman's intuition had told Katt that Krystal wanted something more in her relationship with Fox, which, from the conversation that Fox and Falco were having, was obviously on the rocks. A baby did sound perfect.

"That's perfect. Tell Katt I said thanks. I think I'll bring it up after dinner. Bye, Falco," Fox said, clicking the button on his headset and hanging up. He took it off and set it down by the sunglasses, looking at himself in the mirror. Now that he wasn't discussing it with anyone, he felt incredibly nervous. Was this really what he wanted to do? What if Krystal was so violently opposed to the idea that she never spoke to Fox again? No, she couldn't do that; that would be rude. Krystal was not a rude person. Krystal was a good person. Krystal was perfect.

She set the communicator back where it had been originally and sat down at the end of the bed. In a minute or two, Fox would be walking out of the door in front of her. What would he say to her? Would she be able to pretend that she had not heard anything? Should she go back and sit in the window seat? No, she couldn't. She didn't know what she was feeling, but it was definitely not a bad feeling. She gazed at the door longingly, waiting those last few minutes for Fox to emerge from the steamy bathroom. As she waited, her legs carried her closer and closer to the door until she was practically on top of it. When she heard the doorknob jiggle, she seemed ready to pounce on the man, and that would be an accurate word to describe the movement she made when the door opened and her man was standing there. She tackled him to the floor and pressed her muzzle against his and embraced him lovingly. Once he had overcome the initial shock he started to lean upward, pressing his body into hers, until they were both standing, backing away from the bathroom. She tumbled onto the bed first and he followed, landing on top of her.

"A celo oei, Fox McCloud," she said in her sexy Cerinian accent, the dinosaur language something Fox had not heard in a long time.

"I love you too, Krystal," he responded between kisses. She started to work her hands up underneath his shirt and dug her claws into his muscular back, and both knew that it was time.

At seven that night, the team met in the large dining hall of the hotel, at the central table. Other tables surrounded it, packed full of the hotel's guests eating their dinners. But today was to be a special day for the Star Fox team. General Peppy Hare sat at one end of the table that had been reserved for Star Fox and their guests. At the other end sat the former General Pepper, still under the weather but full of vigor and pep. He was carrying a cane now, and his skin was sagging more and more with each passing day. The sounds of conversation filled the room, interspersed with the clinking of plates and utensils as food was passed and eaten.

Sitting next to Peppy was Fox McCloud, wearing his finest tuxedo and enjoying his cut of the veal. Krystal sat next to him in a gorgeous deep blue dress, poking at her garden salad and holding hands with Fox underneath the table. On her other side were newlyweds Slippy and Amanda Toad, the latter of which could not stop thinking about their newborn child at home, being babysat by Amanda's mother. Next to Amanda was Pepper, who seemed to be sharing life advice with the two toads. On Pepper's right was Falco Lombardi, who kept sneaking glances over at Fox and Krystal, trying to catch Fox's attention, but he never could. Katt sat next to him, doing the same, but with Krystal and not Fox. She wanted the female fox to turn and hear some of Slippy and Amanda's talk about baby Tad, maybe to try and stir something up inside of her and make her more open to the inevitable conversation with Fox. On her other side was Bill Grey, a good friend of Fox's who did not have a date to the party but didn't seem to care. Lucy Hare was on his right, around the corner of the table from her father.

Midway through dinner, Pepper stood up to make a toast, raising his glass of red wine into the air.

"These past few years have gone by with a lot of trouble for Lylat," he started, and the hotel patrons turned to the table to join in the toast, raising their glasses as well. The bloodhound continued.

"But it seems that no matter what kind of peril the Lylat System is in, there is always one team we can count on. One team that never gives up and will stop for nothing to ensure our peace and prosperity. To the Star Fox team!" he said, and the call echoed throughout the chamber. General Hare stood and added on to the speech.

"Having flown with these guys for many years, I feel inclined to speak as well. Falco, Slippy, and Krystal, you three have been a huge motivation for me. I feel like a father to all of you, and you've made me proud as my children. And Fox, having had the honor to have flown with both your father and you, I know that I am a very lucky old hare indeed. You two are so much alike that sometimes I swore I saw his spirit shining through in you. To Star Fox!" he said, and the call echoed yet again throughout the chamber. Dinner continued after the toast, and slowly the guests left the room, all except for the center table. The ten sitting at that table talked long into the night, and not once did Fox's hand leave Krystal's.

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Author Notes: This event took place a couple of months after Star Fox Command ended. The next chapter will take place either three and a half months after Command or five months after Command (I haven't decided if I could write a full chapter on the 3.5 month event, though I'm sure I can). R&R, people, reviews are always a nice thing to see when you sign into the site.


	2. Renewed

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Disclaimer: Star Fox belongs to Nintendo, not me. All characters taken from the games belong to them, while original characters are my own creations. The story itself is mine as well, but it takes place in a universe that I do not own. That, my friends, is why it is called fanfiction.

3 1/2 months after Command

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The only reason Fox had been able to keep himself up this long was because of the complimentary coffee that the hospital was providing for him. It was well past three in the morning, but the doctors would only let Fox in the room for key moments of the delivery. He did not know why this was, but he had accepted it well enough. While pouring his third cup, he knew that he was going to be wired all day, but it would probably be a good thing. With the baby coming, he didn't know if he would be able to get any sleep anyway.

"Chill out, man, I know you're about to be a dad but you don't need to be drinking anything that'll make you shake more than you already are," Bill said, trying to pull the cup away from his friend, but the fox would not have it. He pushed Bill's arm away and walked past him, sitting down in one of the uncomfortable chairs. He had not prepared himself for this night at all, it seemed. When Krystal's water had broken, she seemed perfectly calm and asked for Fox to kindly take her to the hospital. On the ride there, she would cringe every time she had a contraction, but otherwise she would enjoy the sights. Fox was the one that was anxious, and it showed. He snapped at everyone who tried to calm him down and thought of the delivery. What if there were complications? What if the baby died? What if Krystal died? What was the baby's gender?

"Fox, you'll be fine," Slippy said, holding his three-month-old baby and sitting next to his wife. Amanda looked up at him and agreed.

"Don't worry, Fox, Krystal is a very strong woman, and with both your genes and hers, the baby should be wonderful," the pink toad said, stroking baby Tad's orange forehead. Fox heard her but her words did not register in his head. He started to wonder if his father had done the same when he was being born.

"His father was the same way," came a voice from the corner of the room. It was Peppy, hidden behind a newspaper. Fox looked at him and got up from the chair, pacing with his cup of coffee in hand. He took a sip every few seconds and soon finished it off. He walked over to the machine to get another, but Bill restrained him.

"Too much, man, calm down," he said, and Fox retreated to a chair near Slippy. Lucy, like her father, had her face buried in a newspaper, and the two seemed to turn the pages simultaneously every time. There was a knock on the waiting room door and Fox immediately jumped up to answer it, rushing over and pulling it open. Standing there were Falco and Katt, both wearing some kind of strange offspring of a flight suit and biker outfit.

"We got here as fast as we could, are we too late?" Katt asked, hugging Fox and going in past him. Falco smiled at his ally and patted him on the back on his way in, saying his hellos to the people around the room.

"No, we're still waiting. They won't let me in right now, so we just gotta kinda sit and wait," Fox said, feeling his fingers shake. Falco sat down next to Slippy and started brushing his feathery hand against Tad. Katt started a quiet conversation with Lucy and Amanda, while Bill remained in the chair nearest the coffee maker. Time seemed to pass in slow motion for Fox, but for everyone else it was very quick. Before they knew it, Fox was being called into the delivery room again.

Krystal was sitting upright in the bed, with an exhausted but determined look on her face. Fox looked at her and she smiled, inviting him to come over to her side. She took his hand and looked up at him.

"Do we want to know the sex yet?" she asked. Fox wanted _something_, but no, he did not want to know the sex of the baby yet. He just wanted all of this to be over and done with, so he could stop worrying about what could happen. Looking at Krystal was all he needed to ensure him that she was alright.

"No, not yet. Let's wait for it to come out," he said, squeezing her hand.

"We're going to have to name it when it comes out. Have we decided?" she asked. Fox shook his head.

"Let's do that now," he said.

In the waiting room, Bill and Slippy had gotten into a conversation about the old days; back when all of them were stupid teenagers. Bill and Fox had shared a room at the Academy, so he had his share of stories about Fox that had Slippy in stitches the whole time he sat there. Out of boredom, Falco and Katt had pulled out a deck of cards and started a game of Kent with Amanda and Lucy. Peppy was absorbed in the news, a lot of which still dealt with the Anglar incident. He smiled when he recognized a name in one of the articles, that of Dash Bowman.

"_I think that, given time, Venom can become a great place to live. It just needs the proper care, and to do that, we need a proper leader here," _the ape had been quoted as saying. Peppy agreed with the ape, though he was much too old to go to Venom and help, not to mention his duties as general. He sighed and removed his reading glasses, setting them down on the small table next to him and folding the newspaper. He needed a nap.

Thirty minutes passed by. Peppy was out cold, his peaceful snoring low and almost unnoticeable to the others. Baby Tad had gone into his own deep slumber as well, allowing Slippy to strap him into his car seat and join in the card game with Bill as his partner. Of all of them, Falco and Bill seemed to be the most into the game, cheering when they won and groaning when they lost. No one kept score.

The door leading into the delivery room opened slowly, revealing a tall Shepherd-type canine dressed in hospital scrubs. As the group saw him, they stood, waiting for the dog to give off the news. He cleared his throat and looked over at Peppy, his body language seeming to ask if they wanted to awaken him first. No one responded.

"Well, then. I've been asked by Mr. McCloud to bring you the news about the delivery. Should we wake General Hare up first?" he asked, his voice deep and powerful. Lucy turned to look at her sleeping father and rushed over to him quickly, shaking his arm as the others watched. Falco caught a glimpse of everyone's cards, sitting face up on the table, out of his peripheral vision. He looked down inconspicuously, making sure no one was close yet. Slippy had Kent.

"Whazzat?" Peppy said, startled by the sudden awakening. Lucy spoke to him quietly.

"News on the baby, wake up!"

"I'm up!" he said tiredly, pushing himself out of the chair and walking over with the rest of them. He didn't look at all like a military official tonight, they all noticed. The Shepherd nodded.

"Greetings, General," he said, and the hare nodded.

"Now that everyone is awake, I will give you the news that Mr. McCloud has told me to give to you," he said. Everyone seemed to suck in and hold their breath at the same time. Peppy, now fully alert, felt like he had when Lucy was born. Fox had always been like a son to him, and now he was going to be a granddaddy.

"The delivery went exceptionally well. There were no complications and the baby is very healthy. Krystal can go home in two days," the dog continued. There were several sighs of relief as everyone let go of the tension that some of them didn't even realize they had.

"And that's all I can tell you, I'm afraid. Mr. McCloud did not want me to reveal the gender of the baby to you," he said, and started to turn around. There were several cries of protest summed up in one word: What?

"I'm only joking," the doctor said, "It's a boy,"

Katt, Lucy, and Amanda all immediately thought of how cute the baby would be, but could not imagine what kind of mixed fur it would have. After all, Krystal's fur color was much different than Fox's, though they were sure that they would love the baby all the same. Falco smiled inwardly, as did Bill. They knew that Fox was probably overwhelmed with joy, both because he was a father and because he had a son.

"Have they named him yet?" Peppy asked, and the Shepherd shook his head.

"They're working on that right now," he said, leaving the waiting room. The door closed slowly behind him, and the group was left to discuss the event.

Fox had climbed into the hospital bed with Krystal and was sitting beside her, his arm draped over her shoulder and his fingers running through her hair. The baby was cradled in Krystal's arms, his eyes shut and his little chest rising and falling rhythmically. They couldn't take their eyes off of their beautiful child. They knew immediately that he looked just like his father, but Krystal had passed on the genes that gave her her blue color. Krystal was rubbing the boy's head lovingly, and every few seconds he would adjust himself to get into a more comfortable position.

"Just like you when you sleep," Krystal said to Fox, and he agreed with her in his mind. The door opened and Dr. Cray walked in.

"He's adorable," the dog said, and Krystal smiled. "Thank you,"

"Have you decided on his name yet?" Cray asked, and the vulpines looked at one another.

"We have," Fox told the doctor, and Krystal spoke the decided name.

"We want to name him Marcus James Alexandrite McCloud," Krystal said. Marcus was a name they had both agreed on, and the middle names were the names of their fathers. Cray handed a clipboard and pen to Krystal so she could write the name down for the hospital.

When Cray left, Fox leaned his head on Krystal's shoulder. She leaned her head on his and continued to stroke Marcus' head, all three of them breathing together in perfect symphony. She shut her eyes and fell asleep, as did Fox, and the McCloud family was at peace.

In the waiting room, Falco was eyeing his toad friend suspiciously, which Slippy had noticed and seemed nervous every time he reached for a card. The bird seemed as though he would pounce on Slippy if he made any strange movements, but Slippy had nothing else he could really do. Bill didn't seem to be paying attention, and even if he had, Falco's constant watching of everything the toad did would give him away the instant he performed his sign.

Bill looked up at Slippy and winked. There was hope after all. The toad took in a short breath and began to say the word-

"Obvious. Bill winked at him," Falco said, his eyes locked on his cards the entire time. Bill threw his hand down on the table and Katt stood with her hand in the air. Falco stood up and high-fived her. That had been their sixth win in a row.

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Author Notes: And so ends Chapter 2. Leave me a review if you enjoyed it. Now that we've gotten past this, we'll begin to drift closer and closer to the proclamation of superiority by Venom, and the action will begin soon after. The next chapter takes place 5 months after the end of Command, so Marcus is around a month and a half old. I will say no more on that subject. I'd also like to thank those of you who took the time to review. It's nice to know there are people who eagerly await what happens next.

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	3. Shattered

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Disclaimer: Star Fox belongs to Nintendo, not me. All characters taken from the games belong to them, while original characters are my own creations. The story itself is mine as well, but it takes place in a universe that I do not own. That, my friends, is why it is called fanfiction.

5 months after Command

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Krystal and Fox both stood at opposite ends of the island in the center of their home's kitchen area. They could hear baby Marcus in the living room, sitting in front of his blocks and bouncing up and down happily. He existed in his own little world, a world of nothing but the noises he found that he could make with his mouth, the blocks with the colorful shapes on them, and the moving picture on the big box in front of him. A small kitten was spinning in circles on the TV as an upbeat melody played in the background, one that was very inviting to the cub. He pushed himself up onto his legs and started to wobble back and forth before collapsing onto his rear. He stood again, determined, his arms stretched to the sides for balance. For a second, he remained upright, and it amazed him. He fell again a mere second later, but the amazement never left him.

The adult foxes stared into each other's eyes, unblinking and unmoving. Finally, Krystal shifted, which is when Fox started to argue again.

"Krystal, just answer the question, why are you so uptight? It's not even a hard one, but you're dodging all around it and making me think something's going on!" he shouted, the vixen crossing her arms and breaking their eye contact. She felt his aura explode with anger inside of him, and heard the thoughts running through his mind that would normally just be the result of paranoia. The thoughts were more than that now, though, and had been since that day she had spent in the park with Marcus, the day she saw him again.

"Nothing is going on, Fox, I don't know why you've become so apprehensive lately! Did it ever occur to you that it might not have been me that changed? I did notice a change in your brainwaves," she lied.

"Cut the telepath bullshit, Krys, I want to know who it is!" Fox screamed at her, the bottled up feelings deep in his heart boiling over violently. Everything seemed to move in slow motion for a moment after that. Krystal put her hand over her mouth, mortified that he had used a curse word with her. He could see her eyes becoming teary, and the guilt hit him like a swift punch to the gut. Marcus had even stopped his walking attempts to look over at them, though he could not understand the words they said. He only knew two: Mama and Dada. Right now, Mama and Dada didn't feel good to think about. He looked back at the kitten on TV.

"Fox…" Krystal trailed off, her angry eyes watering and spilling onto her blue fur, the streams darkening their path along her cheeks. Fox stood aghast at what he had just said, but it was what he truly felt. Though he tried and tried again to think of something else that might have happened, some other reason she would be hiding something from him, he could think of nothing else. He wanted to take back his angry outburst, but he knew that he had just ripped what was left of their relationship in two, and it would take much more than an apology to sew together the remaining threads.

"No, Krys, I'm-"

"It's okay, Fox. It's fine. I'm…I'm going to go for a drive. Just…please, just forgive me…"

She turned and rushed for the door, narrowly beating Fox. It slammed shut behind her, making Marcus look up at his dad, who stood on the wrong side of the door. He let his forehead fall forward and sit against the wood for a moment, absorbing everything that had just happened. It was too much, but he wouldn't let himself cry. He couldn't. He had to be strong, for both of them. He rubbed his red eyes and turned around, seeing Marcus on the floor. The baby looked up at him confusedly, his head cocked to the side.

"Mama?" he said, and Fox shed a single tear.

"Mama will be home soon, buddy. She'll be home," Fox said, kneeling down in front of Marcus and lifting the boy up. He took him over to the rocking chair and sat down.

"She'll be home, buddy," he said again, sniffling. They sat there in silence, the daylight fading around them, as the kitten danced on TV.

Krystal opened the door of the family SUV and climbed into the driver's seat, fumbling in her purse for the keys. She found them and stabbed at the ignition for the small hole, frustrating herself even further. She couldn't look at it; she couldn't look at anything that even remotely showed her reflection. Her red, puffy eyes were visible in her rearview mirror, which she turned away. When the key finally went in, she turned it and started the car. As both hands touched the steering wheel, she slammed her forehead into them.

No…no…he's always been there, always faithful, always perfect…why am I so stupid? Why am I so stupid?

The phrase looped in her head as her tears began to pour harder, but all she could do was sit and cry. Why had he come back? Why had he just shown up in her life again? Marcus had brought her and Fox together again, and they were happy, so happy…but that stupid cat had to come back, had to run into her, had to start talking to her. She cursed herself in between her looping thoughts for giving in, for falling in her moment of weakness.

And I didn't even tell him, didn't even think to tell him. Why am I so stupid? Fox is more deserving; I'm not worth his love. I'm just a dirty whore, a fly on his windshield, holding him down, making him love me, oh, why am I so stupid?

By the time she stopped crying long enough to look outside the car, night had fallen. She could not go back into the house, though. She felt too dirty to go back into the house. Her eyes fell on the glove box. A memory played in her head.

"He's very handsome. Surely his looks come from you, Krys," Panther purred, tracing one of his claws along the boy's forehead. Marcus enjoyed the feeling, enjoyed having someone other than his parents focus on him. Krystal looked up at Panther and felt all of her old feelings flicker to life inside of her, that flame between them rekindled. She smiled and Panther's heart melted.

"_Thank you, Panther. He's the spitting image of Fox, everyone says, with my fur," she said, remembering that she was still in love, that whatever had come up between her and Panther could not be._

"_And you and Fox are happy being together," Panther said, more of a statement than a question. Krystal nodded._

"_I'm happy if you're happy," he said, looking up at the clock tower in the middle of the park. The digital readout said that it was almost noon._

"_Oh, dear. I've got an interview at one with Corneria News, about Star Wolf's role with the Anglars. It's been a couple of months since General Hare had our bounties removed. Forgive me for not visiting sooner, it took me a while to get used to what freedom feels like," Panther told her, standing up. Krystal picked up Marcus and did the same._

"_I should be going, too. It was good to see you, Panther," she said, a hint of longing in her voice. He stared deeply into her eyes and she felt it all again, felt her love for him burning. Before she knew it, she was leaning in, locking lips with the slightly taller feline. He returned her affection in the same way, for but a split-second, leaving her wanting more. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small card._

"_If you ever want to see me again," he said, writing his number down on the card and handing it to her. She took it and looked up at him._

"_Goodbye, Krystal," he said, and he walked away. The drive home had her feeling anxious. What if Fox could see it on her face? What if she smelled like him? What if he found a black hair on her? Had Marcus seen? Did he understand? What was happening to her? She took the number and shoved it deep into the glove box, where Fox would never bother to look._

She was torn. She had nowhere else to go. She pushed the button on the front and dug for the number, pulling out of the driveway when she grabbed the card. As she drove, she dialed Panther.

"Hello?" she heard after the third ring. It was him.

"Panther?" she asked, and he responded with a yes.

"Panther, I don't know what to do. I…I need someone to talk to. Please," she begged.

Fox picked up the wireless receiver at the house. Marcus wouldn't stop saying it, wouldn't stop asking for Mama. Fox tried to choke back the flow, but Marcus' baby talk was pushing him closer and closer to his limits. He dialed the only number he could think of that wasn't Krystal's.

"Hello?" he heard on the other end.

"Falco? Hey, it's Fox," he said, wiping his nose with his arm.

"Fox? Is that you? Are you crying?" the bird asked, but Fox only nodded.

"Falco, can you put Katt on the line? I need to talk to her," he asked. Falco looked across his living room to the dark-furred cat, who saw him look at her and gave him a questioning glance.

"It's for you," he said. Katt didn't live with Falco, so she found it odd that she was receiving a call while at his house. She eyed the phone suspiciously and put the receiver to her ear. "This is Katt,"

"Katt? Please, I need to ask you a question," Fox said. Marcus fell onto his side and started to sleep.

"Fox? Are you okay?"

He had to think about it. Was he okay? Was he blowing it all out of proportion? No, he had considered all of this earlier.

"Katt, have you ever cheated on someone?" he asked. She got a shocked look on her face and looked up at Falco, who could not hear the other end of the conversation. The answer was yes, she had, but she didn't want to say it. She still felt filthy about it, though she had been forgiven long ago.

"Why do you ask?" she responded. Fox knew that he was about to finally say it, to admit that Krystal had someone else. But he couldn't. He couldn't say it, not to one of Krystal's good friends. He couldn't admit it.

"How do you know someone's been cheating on you? What signs do you see?"

The cat finally realized what he was trying to say.

"No…"

Fox was tired. He needed to take a nap, to wallow in his misery for a little while longer.

"I'm sorry I bothered you, Katt," he said, and he hung up the phone. He sat down on the couch and watched Marcus sleep.

_Mama will be home soon, _he kept thinking.

A few hours later, a sleek black motorcycle sped down the street the McCloud family called home. Two helmeted figures sat in the seat, the smaller one sitting in back, her arms wrapped around the larger's waist. They slowed to a crawl and pulled up in the McCloud driveway, followed closely by a white SUV. The smaller rider stepped off of the motorcycle, her blue tail brushing the rose painted on the side of the vehicle. She took off her helmet and set it down on Panther's seat.

"Thank you," she said, one of the only things she had been able to say all night. She was now clad in leather, looking much like her black-furred friend. The SUV pulled into the driveway alongside Panther's motorcycle and the headlights turned off. The door swung open and a tall figure stepped out, shutting it behind him. He was just above Fox in height, Krystal noticed, and his dark gray fur looked black in the night, though the difference was obvious when he stood by Panther. Over one eye, he wore a very futuristic-looking eyepatch.

"And thank you, Wolf. You're too kind. I would've never been able to drive it home myself," she said. He smiled.

"It was a pleasure. Nice place you got here," he said, and she looked up at her house. Not once in her entire time living her had she ever appreciated its full glory, not until now. Thinking about the memories it housed almost made her wish…

She pushed the thought out of her mind and sucked in a breath, preparing herself to enter the house after her fight with Fox. She put her hand on the doorknob and turned it slowly, starting to wonder where Fox was. Was he still in the living room, and would he see her come in? Or had he retreated to his bedroom? She hoped for the latter. She pushed the door open, seeing no light shining out at her. The room was pitch black. Fox had gone to sleep upstairs.

She pushed the door back into the frame and started to tiptoe across the carpet, though she made little noise either way. In the dark, it seemed that everything was incredibly loud. Her own breaths were all she could hear, that and her loud steps, and she had to stop breathing if she wanted complete peace. Still, though, the ringing of silence echoed in her large canine ears.

The hallway was just ahead, and her vision was becoming clearer in the pitch dark. She could make out only the white walls around her, not any of the furniture that may have blocked her way. From the hallway, she would turn the corner and find the stairs, and just up the stairs was the room.

The creaking was the loudest noise she had heard all night, and it continued endlessly as she climbed the incline to the second floor. When her covered feet touched the top step, she wanted to breathe a sigh of relief, but she feared her breath would wake him.

She opened the door and saw the dim orange glow of Marcus' nightlight, shining on his nearby crib and casting the baby's shadow on the wall. She could see his chest rising and falling and heard him snoring lightly. It was too much. Her tears began to flow again and she walked over to his crib, rubbing his head gently. He woke up and looked up at her, wide-eyed.

"Mama?" he asked, and she nodded, sobbing. She lifted the child out of the crib and held him closely, and he started to play with her hair. She sensed his happiness, and in a way, it made her regret what she was going to do, made her want to give up what she had planned for the night. But, no, she couldn't. It was set in stone.

"Marcus…" she cried, putting his head on her shoulder, "A'cc doloh ro u weet odeiwx mekxoh veh oei,"

He looked up at her quizzically and looked into her reddened eyes, though it was hard to see them in the dim light. He felt something coming from her, some kind of emotion, something he never saw before. He didn't like it. He started to cry.

"No, Marcus, please, no, don't cry, please, don't cry," she begged him, and she stood there for a moment, cradling the child, before she saw a light come on in the hallway. She stopped and stared for a second, putting Marcus down in the crib. She had to leave, and she had to do it now.

She pulled the door open and stepped into the hallway, nearly running into the fully clothed Fox. He stopped and stared disbelievingly, but she could see nothing other than the stairs close by. She tried to push by him and get to them without him saying anything, maybe without him even believing she had really been there.

"Krys!" he said, turning around and grabbing her by the shoulder. She knocked his arm away and kept running, but Fox was faster. He caught her halfway down the stairs and grabbed her arm again.

"Krystal, wait, stop!" he commanded as her twisted her around, causing her to swing violently into the wall and nearly trip.

"Let go of me, Fox!" she yelled, and she heard Marcus start calling for his parents. Fox turned his head to face the baby's bedroom, and then back to facing Krystal. Marcus could wait.

"Krys, just talk to me!" he yelled at her, but she would not. Her eyes started to tear up.

"No, Fox. I can't. I'm sorry," she said. Fox's ears flattened out, and he looked at her as if he had just been slapped.

"I'm sorry, Fox! I can't do this anymore. I'm going back to be with Panther and the rest of Star Wolf,"

The next few moments were filled with silence. Marcus sat up in his crib and crawled over to the rails, putting his hands on them, trying to break them down. He could feel their emotions from where he was, and he knew that something bad was happening. He cried for them more loudly.

"No, Krystal, please," Fox said, now much more quiet. He looked weakened, like he would drop to his knees at any second. No other words came to his mind, just angry thoughts. He had tried so hard to fix things between them, and it had worked so well. The McCloud family was happy. Now, none of them were happy.

"Fox," Krystal said, wiping away her tears. Her voice had suddenly changed, now strong and serious. "If you love me, you'll want what's best for me. And right now, what's best for me is Panther." The coldness in her voice shocked Fox even further into speechlessness. He fell to one knee on the steps and looked into her eyes.

"Krystal," he said, and she turned away.

"Goodbye, Fox,"

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Author Notes: In case you were wondering what Krystal said to Marcus, it was, "I'll never be a good enough mother for you," in Saurian. Got questions or comments? Leave me a review, I accept anonymous comments. I'll be waiting to update this story until I have another chapter up of my other fanfic, The Only Way Out, which should only take me a day or two (it's halfway done). The next chapter will take place 15 months after the end of Command, or 10 months after this chapter.

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	4. No Goodbyes

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Disclaimer: Star Fox belongs to Nintendo, not me. All characters taken from the games belong to them, while original characters are my own creations. The story itself is mine as well, but it takes place in a universe that I do not own. That, my friends, is why it is called fanfiction.

15 months after Command

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A long corridor stretched between the two main sections of the dilapidated space colony that the wolf had come to know as his home in the years since Andross' defeat in the Lylat Wars. He stood unmoving in the dark hall, staring out the window into space. The bright Sector Y nebula glowed the normal pale yellow color that the wolf frequently watched. It never did anything special, no, but he did not have much else to do. For a mercenary team such as his, work was slow; especially with much more appealing teams to call on for work, like Star Fox. Of course, Star Wolf would do some of the things that Fox McCloud would frown upon. Those jobs, though few and far between, were what kept the Star Wolf team alive.

He watched a spinning object in the distance, only visible because it was passing between the wolf's vision and the bright nebula. It strongly resembled a ship, a Cornerian Fighter to be specific. It looked like a much older model than what was currently piloted by the fighters, and it was not the only one Wolf had seen. They were remnants of the battle that occurred in this part of space long ago, when Venomian forces invaded. Sometimes, one would drift close enough for Wolf to look out and see the busted cockpit, indicating that the pilot had drifted off into space years before. Once, though, and only once, he looked out to see the skeleton of a soldier peering at him with empty eyes as the ship drifted slowly by.

He shook the memory out of his head and noticed the motion-sensitive lights above him flicker to life. When had they gone out? How long had he been standing there? Was he really that still? He looked both ways, expecting to see one of his teammates standing at the end of the hall. No one was there. It was late, Wolf decided. He turned to his left and walked away from the window. When he was out of the hall, the lights turned off, that corridor now invisible in the vacuum of space.

Inside the elevator that took him down to the living quarters, he could see himself in the shiny mirror-like metal walls. His image reminded him of his younger self, naïve and narcissistic and evil. Andross had brought the team together to eliminate Star Fox. Wolf was appointed leader due to his past work, work that made him cross paths with the original Star Fox team, and Fox's father, James. Leon Powalski was a coldhearted killer, something Wolf could sense from the moment their eyes met so long ago. Pigma Dengar was to be another of his teammates, and though Wolf did not have any particular liking to the greedy ham, they had worked together before and he proved to be a somewhat reliable ally. And then there was Oikonny, the young ape, nephew of the Great Andross himself. He was a sub par pilot, but Andross wanted him there, and Andross always got what he wanted. Of those three, Leon was the only one still a part of Star Wolf.

Wolf removed the cloth eyepatch that he wore around Sargasso and looked into the metal at the red, moist area where his eye once was. This had been one of his leading motivations in the Lylat Wars, the loss of his eye and the effect it had on his piloting skills. Over time, he regained his abilities, but the eye was something he could never get back. James McCloud had destroyed it with that shot, the one that was supposed to kill Wolf O'Donnell. With James dead, only his son could pay for the sins of the father.

A bell chimed and Wolf quickly put the eyepatch back on. He stepped through the doors into the dark hall, with four doors visible thanks to the glowing yellow trim around them. One was unused, and had only a white bed in the center with concrete flooring all around. Wolf's room was directly across from that one, and right next to Leon's. Across from Leon's was where Panther and Krystal slept.

"Still up," Leon said, his gravelly voice startling Wolf. It came out of the darkness, and Wolf could not see where the chameleon was. Slowly, the green lizard returned to his normal coloring after having blended with a black chair that he was sitting on.

"Yeah. Nothing to do," Wolf said, walking past the chameleon.

"She's doing it again," Leon said, with a hint of anger in his voice. Wolf stopped and listened. He could hear whimpering coming from Panther's bedroom, whimpering that sounded like-

"Is she saying names again?" Wolf asked, and Leon nodded.

"Father. Mama. Marcus," Leon recited. They heard the mattress shift and stood in wait. The door to the bedroom finally opened and out came Panther, dressed in a pair of white boxers with red hearts on them. He stopped and looked at his teammates. Wolf grinned, amused.

"Laugh all you want," Panther said, shutting the door behind him.

"Is she okay?" Wolf asked. Leon crossed his arms.

"She's keeping me awake," the chameleon said, "Tell her she needs to get over her issues or leave,"

"She's fine. Well, as fine as she's ever been while she's been here," the cat responded to Wolf, ignoring Leon altogether. He had grown accustomed to Leon's dislike of Krystal and knew to expect it wherever the two of them were together.

"She sounds homesick," Wolf said, and Panther's head drooped.

"I've tried everything," the cat said, "but nothing stops the crying. I think she heard,"

"Heard what?" Wolf asked.

"The talk,"

"Talk?"

"In town. People talk. They point at her. They say things. They call her names. I think she hears them. That's what this is about. They call her traitor. She thinks that everyone hates her. She thinks we hate her, I think," Panther said. Both Panther and Wolf turned their heads to Leon, who did not notice.

"She's better off here anyway," Wolf said. Panther was not as sure as his leader, but he did not say anything.

In the room, Krystal had awakened. She sat up in the bed and rubbed the tears out from under her eyes and grabbed a tissue from her night table. The box was almost empty, she noticed. The sheet was covered in sweat and sticking to her fur. She noticed that Panther was not in bed with her. The small elevator in the corner that led to the hangar was not activated, so he was not in there. Perhaps he had gone for a walk. She brushed away her tears as they came and stood up, putting on her robe and slippers and walking toward the door.

"I want to get rid of her," Leon said, his voice sending shivers up and down Panther's spine. Krystal froze in place.

"You're being critical," Wolf accused, but the chameleon continued.

"Her crying has gone to ridiculous levels. She cries for home, her home is gone. Her home is nothing. She cries for people who have been dead since she was a child. She cries for a baby that will never know her, and probably will be a crybaby like her. She brings down the morale and image of the entire team. I don't like her. I want her off. She's almost as bad as Oikonny,"

She felt as though she had been slapped. Her hand, which had been ready to push the door open, froze, before slowly balling into a fist involuntarily. Wolf and Panther looked at Leon with shocked expressions, though Krystal could not see them. What she heard was her lover not defending her, not even trying. What she heard was her leader, quiet and uncaring. What she heard was hate, waves of it pulsing from her teammates. The tears flowed freely again. She backed over to her bed slowly, clenching her teeth, and sat down.

In her mind, her breakup with Fox began to replay. She curled up in a fetal position and started to fall asleep, her feral rage mixing with depression and tiredness. She couldn't do it anymore. Everyone was right. She was a traitor, a whore, all the names they called her. It was all true.

An hour or so later, she was somewhere between sleep and consciousness. She heard the door open, but it did not register in her mind. Soft footsteps approached the bed and climbed in with her, that muscular body that she had come to know so well lying down next to her. A powerful black arm wrapped around her waist.

"Are you awake?" his deep voice asked, and she turned her head, alert.

"It's late, honey. We should get some sleep," he said, and he kissed her. She did not kiss him back.

"Honey?" the cat asked, and she made a noise with her throat, the savage offspring of "hmm" and "ugh."

"I love you,"

She did not look back. His other arm began to massage her back.

"I will always love you, Krystal," he said. She did not respond. She did not love him.

Leon retreated to his room, satisfied that it was now quiet. He fell asleep quickly, though his slumber was always light and short. Wolf went into his room and stripped down to his boxer-briefs, lying down on his comfortable mattress and pulling the comforter up to his waist. Though he didn't want to consider it, Leon had been correct on some of his points. Krystal was starting to become a nuisance, but her behavior was not grounds for taking her off of the team. She was an incredibly tough pilot. But even if Leon had been partly right, his Oikonny comment had been uncalled for. He didn't know what he was going to do. It seemed like the team was tearing itself apart. He drifted into his troubled sleep, tossing and turning throughout the night.

Morning came quickly, though Leon was the only one to notice. He stood up, not bothering to stretch, and left his room, smiling when he heard no noise coming from Krystal. Breakfast was on his mind. He left the hall and took the elevator up to the kitchen area, where he was satisfied to see four of Wolf's old cronies preparing some sort of omelet. The smell of chopped onions was like that of flowers to the reptile, who sat down at the long table at his appropriate seat. The cronies, all of some indeterminate canine species, tried to avoid eye contact with him when they could. It didn't help that he could look in two different directions at the same time.

Wolf was the next to awaken, though he did not want to leave his bed. He was still troubled by the past night's events, and wondered how they could get through breakfast without commotion between Krystal and Leon. He slowly stood and reached for a clean shirt and pants, pulling them on and leaving the room, his cloth eyepatch still strapped to his head. He followed the smell of omelet down the stairs, the long way, and sat down at the head of the table. Leon had pulled out a very thick book and was reading it, and barely acknowledged Wolf's presence. The lupine noticed that it seemed that Leon had one eye on him at all times.

Panther stirred, instinctively scratching his nose as he rubbed the sleep from his eyes. He sat up and looked over at where his beloved slept, and felt a cold chill when he realized that he was in the bed alone. He glanced around the room and could not see her. Her flight suit was missing from its hanger, right next to where Panther's was. The breakfast light was burning brightly above the door. He sighed, feeling relieved. She must have gone to breakfast before him.

He stood up and stretched, his outfit for the day lying neatly at the end of the bed for him. Krystal did this every morning. Once dressed, he too made his way for the dining hall. He could smell cheese and tomatoes as he descended in the elevator, and the door opened up into the vast chamber. At the head of the table sat Wolf, his head resting on his hand. Leon was engrossed in a rather large book. Krystal, however, was nowhere to be found.

"Good morning, Panther," one of Wolf's cronies said, but Panther ignored them. He was focused on Krystal's empty seat, next to the one he sat in. Wolf looked up and saw his teammate approaching, and his expression quickly changed to one of confusion. It was odd to see Panther come down alone. Usually, it meant Krystal was sick.

"Where's Krystal?" Wolf asked. Panther shrugged.

"I thought she was here," he said, now worried. Leon was indifferent to the situation.

"I haven't seen her," Wolf said, and the cronies were beginning to see that something was wrong. They were also accustomed to seeing Panther emerge from the elevator with the lovely vixen Krystal at his side. All of them looked at each other as if to ask if anyone had seen her, but no one had.

Panther's eyes widened when he remembered the missing flight suit.

"I'll be right back," Panther said hurriedly, turning and rushing back to the elevator. It was quicker to get to the hangar through his bedroom than it would be from the dining hall, so he blazed through the room quickly and took the one-person elevator down. As the Wolfens came into view, Panther saw the empty parking spot. He dropped to his knees. Krystal was gone.

Near Aquas, a ship was drifting through space. The light of Lylat Star shone off of the white surface and into the cockpit. A very frustrated blue vixen piloted the small craft. She did not know her destination, but she kept flying anyway. All of the voices were running through her mind at the same time. All of the names she had been called were exploding in her ears and she could not stop crying. She wasn't Krystal anymore. Krystal was pure, this vixen was tainted. A tainted Krystal could not exist. She kept thinking that she should not have escaped Cerinia alive. Her life was once a blessing. Now, it was Kursed.

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Author Notes: And so ends chapter 4. It is 4:08 AM. Wow. I can't believe I'm up this late writing. Since it is so late, I can't think of much else to say, other than to please leave me a review. And I think it's only fair to warn you now that school (that evil place) is starting again soon, the 27th, so I will probably be updating less frequently after that. Well, maybe. I might be updating more frequently, since I'll need a reason to procrastinate on school work.

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	5. Deterioration

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Disclaimer: Star Fox belongs to Nintendo, not me. All characters taken from the games belong to them, while original characters are my own creations. The story itself is mine as well, but it takes place in a universe that I do not own. That, my friends, is why it is called fanfiction.

The first part of this chapter takes place 23 months after Command. The second jumps to 6 years after Command, and the third takes place 8 years after Command.

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A crowd of people had gathered around the long, rectangular box, none of them moving much at all. The sky was dark and foreboding, and the sound of thunder periodically permeated the thick atmosphere that hovered above the crowd. Though they were outdoors and in an uncovered area, no one seemed to care that a storm was coming. At one end of the box was a raised area, and atop it sat a podium. General Hare was standing there, speaking. Down on his left were the higher ranked members of Corneria's military, including Commander Bill Grey. He stood erect and looked straight ahead, his expression blank. On the general's right stood the mercenary team Star Fox. At the other end of the box stood a video camera and the associated crew. To the sides stood select individuals, including Lucy Hare and Amanda Toad, both holding their children. Tad Toad, now 22 months old, squirmed in Amanda's arms, wanting to stand on his own, but his mother was afraid he would crawl away without anyone noticing. Lucy's girl, nine-month-old Alexa, looked just like her father, who was not present.

"I'd like to conclude with a bit of advice given to me by our beloved former general. 'A man who throws dirt loses ground.'" At that moment, Peppy started to tear up. A single salty tear slid down into the fur on his face. "No other tidbit I've received in my 60 years has had such an impact on me as that. Our loss will be felt throughout the Lylat System for years to come. This man has changed our world more than any other figure of our past. With these final words, we lower the casket into a well-deserved rest for Pepper," he finished. The rectangular box started to lower into the pit below. The black-clad crowd glued their eyes to Pepper's casket until it came to rest below ground level.

"We're off camera now, General!" one of the crewmembers called out, and the general nodded before stepping away from the podium. The crew moved to the platform the old hare had stood on and began to disassemble it, carrying pieces away to a large truck hidden away on the nearby road. Family members reunited away from the casket as a group of men moved over to it and began to pour dirt into the pit. Another truck brought in a large statue that depicted General Pepper in his younger years that would serve as a monument for him.

Fox walked away with his head lowered and hands in his pockets, closely followed by Katt and Falco. Katt was carrying Marcus, who wore a formal-type outfit that Fox had worn when he was little. Falco seemed unaffected by Pepper's passing.

"We've been standing for two hours. Let's just go sit down somewhere and talk," Katt suggested. Fox changed courses for a nearby bench, where the three of them sat down.

No one spoke for nearly half an hour. Falco finally broke the uneasy cloud that had surrounded them with his voice.

"I'm gonna miss the old hound dog," he said, and Katt agreed. Marcus had fallen asleep in her arms, and she stroked his nose playfully. Falco nodded in Fox's direction, but he could not tell if his friend and leader had seen it. The canine's eyes were hidden behind his father's shades. The quiet descended upon them again, but Fox's eyes were far from static behind the dark glass. He looked at Katt and Falco, holding his child. He looked at Slippy and Amanda, both cuddled up with baby Tad on a far away bench. He looked to his side, as if expecting Krystal to show up, but she did not. He had not heard from her since that dreadful night, the night that Marcus would not sleep.

"I didn't realize this hit you so hard, Fox," Katt said, handing Marcus to the father. He took hold of the baby and felt his tiny heartbeat through his clothes, almost in sync with Fox's own. The child was all he had left of her. He would not let anything happen to it.

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The toad walked down the halls of the Great Fox, for the first time paying real attention to the splendor of his team's mothership. He could hear the sounds of the party drifting through the empty corridors, and while it was all fun, he wanted to get away from it all, to be with the technological marvel that had served them through the Anglar incident. Sure, it wasn't the old ship, and the layout still felt a little foreign, but it had been home for so long.

Six years, the toad realized. It had been six years since the Anglar incident, and already he had three children of his own. Tad, who was in the first grade at his school on Aquas and was excelling at just about everything, Rhythm, the first of their female children, now four years old, and Lago, the one-year-old. Tad was back at the party playing tag with Marcus and Alexa, all three of them nearly the same age. Amanda was probably engaged in conversation with Katt and Lucy, while Fox, Falco, and Bill traded off turns in air hockey.

_Fox, _Slippy thought to himself. For some reason, he couldn't help but wonder about the vulpine. He had lost so much throughout his career, gained so little. When James had died, Fox went ballistic, almost killing himself twice. His mother and father both killed by the same maniacal ape…it took a huge deal of will power to persevere through it, to push away the urge to end it all with a clean slice and a few seconds of pain. Yet throughout the Lylat Wars, Slippy had never seen Fox even flinch at the name of his father. He did not pause when Peppy echoed James' advice and did not fly into an outrage when Pigma Dengar described the details of the older McCloud's demise. He kept his cool, dealt with everything rationally. Andross had been killed, and for eight years, peace. Through it all, Fox had gained nothing to fill the hole in his heart.

Then Krystal came along, the beautiful blue-furred Cerinian vixen that Fox fell in love with. Slippy suddenly didn't want to think about it, as if Fox could read his thoughts from the other room. Everyone had seen how that loss had affected Fox. He didn't eat for days at a time. He rarely slept. All he drank was coffee. Once, when Marcus was five, Slippy had talked to him. Even Marcus remembered what it was like, despite having been so young. The boy described an overwhelming feeling of sadness that he felt whenever he was near his father, so potent that it seemed stupid for the baby fox to cry. The boy's adeptness for seeing others' emotions did not surprise most of Star Fox; after all, his mother had been a telepath.

It seemed strange for Fox to be so happy now, such a loving father, so protective of others. In the midst of all his losses, he found solace in his single greatest gain, Marcus. Strangest of all to Slippy was Fox's almost immediate support when he was told that the toad would be quitting the team to live with his family. And here they were, two weeks later, completely packed and ready to leave, in the middle of Slippy's going away party. And yet, the guest of honor had wandered off into the halls to reflect on his past.

"Daddy, Uncle Fox says they need you!" he heard from behind, and looked to see Tad standing behind him, wearing a brown cowboy hat. Slippy chuckled, remembering the day that Beltino had given Tad the hat, and smiled.

"Coming," he said, and Tad bolted back through the hall and to the party. Slippy took slow footsteps, though he was curious as to why he was needed. Half of him wanted to stay on the ship for the rest of his time, but the other half knew that he had served long enough, and should live out the remainder of his days with his family. Walking through the door, he saw everyone gathered at the table, with one of the end seats open. At the other end sat Fox, with a corked bottle of champagne.

"Sit down, Slippy, I've got a present for you. It's a going-away gift," Fox said, and Slippy slid himself into the seat, Amanda and the children to his left. As soon as he looked settled, he looked up, making eye contact with Fox, who reached down to the floor and brought up a rectangular box, expertly wrapped with green and pink striped paper. There was no bow, but there was a sticker on the top. Fox pushed the box, and it slid down the table, stopping just within Slippy's reach. He pulled it closer and read the sticker.

"We'll miss you, bud," it said. The toad ripped into the paper, seeing a white box, typical of clothing. Once he had removed the remainder of the paper, he took the lid off of the box and gazed at its contents. It was a flight jacket, with a brownish-gray color. It had the smell of new leather, and looked as new as it smelled. But it was far from new, Slippy could tell. It was his flight jacket from the Lylat Wars.

"Wow," Slippy said, and everyone around the table craned their necks to get a better look at it. Falco knew exactly what it was, and knew that Slippy had thrown it out years ago. It had been ripped in several places, torn at the seams, yet here it was, good as new.

"I had it restored," Fox said, and Slippy slid an arm into one of the sleeves. It felt like the first time, yet his memories of the jacket all flooded back. It was just as comfortable as he remembered.

"Wow, Fox. This is…"

"Don't mention it. It's hardly even a gift either way," Fox said, "It's kinda been yours the whole time, so I'm not really giving you anything,"

"Yeah, I guess. Thanks a lot, Fox. This is really thoughtful,"

"It was the least I could do," the canine said, popping the cork off of the champagne bottle. It flew and bounced off of the ceiling, much to the amusement of the kids there. Fox poured the drink into the nearby glasses and passed them around, to everyone except the kids. Instead, they drank sparkling cider.

"May the Toad family live long and prosper," Fox said, raising his glass, and the others did the same. They clinked glasses and drank.

A few hours later, the group accompanied the growing Toad family to the hangar. A cargo ship was parked in the center, prepped and ready for takeoff whenever the pilot was ready. It contained everything on the Great Fox that had belonged to Slippy. When the Toads boarded the craft and the door slid shut and locked, a wave of finality hit the team, now consisting only of Fox and Falco.

"And then there were two, right?" Falco said, slapping Fox on the shoulder. Fox nodded.

"Don't think you're leaving me any time soon, Falco," Fox said, turning around and leaving the hangar.

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The Cornerian Freighter broke through the thin layer of clouds covering the new capital city of Venom. The pilot had never been to this planet before, but had heard his share of stories. It was said to have been covered in a cloud of poison. The oceans were filled with acid and the air was toxic. Plants did not grow and life could not thrive. Those who did live there were horrific mutants.

Looking at the planet now, eight years after a terraforming project started, one would swear that they were looking at a second Corneria. The ground was covered in grass and trees, and there were buildings everywhere. He could see hovercars racing down the streets below as the freighter approached the building he was looking for, which vaguely resembled a stadium. It was Venom's government building, and from above the Cornerian pilot could see a huge crowd gathered on the steps outside.

The pilot slid on a pair of headphones as his radio frequency changed automatically to the one broadcasting the speech being given down below. Loud rock music played in his large floppy ears, and he piloted the freighter into the large opening above the government building. All he knew was that the cargo was precious, and that the contents of the freighter were strictly need-to-know. He saw a group of chimpanzees approach the craft as he landed and he pushed a button to open the rear hatches. The airlocks released and the chimps poured in, carrying out box after box of the unknown item. When the Cornerian offered to help, one chimp brought out a stun baton and ordered the beagle to back away. He complied and left the area at the command of another monkey.

Television screens lined the hallways of the government building, and on all of them the beagle could see the face of Dash Bowman. It was a name heard of throughout Lylat. He flew for Corneria during the Anglar incident, at one point with the legendary Fox McCloud. While not amazing, he held his own in the air. He headed the terraforming of Venom, and was now the most respected individual on the planet. His face definitely looked different than it had years before. He was sporting a beard on this day, and looked tired. His voice, though, was just as powerful and influential as it had ever been. When he spoke, the people listened. It was almost as though they worshipped him.

"We've surpassed them economically! We've surpassed the size of their army! We've surpassed their leadership skills!" Dash shouted, and an eerie feeling crept up on the beagle. His ears perked up and he stopped walking, his eyes zeroing in on the orator's face. The crowd cheered wildly, the sound echoing throughout the building, throughout the city's streets, throughout the beagle's world. He saw a doorway in his peripheral vision and absentmindedly pushed himself through it. He was outside now, the crowd's noise becoming much louder, hurting his ears. He could see Dash on the stairs, raising his fist in triumph.

"Corneria is no longer the center of Lylat power! Venom's time has come!" he closed. Thousands of spectators imitated his hand gesture, their eyes glowing with the prospect of being the most powerful planet in all of the system. The beagle's eyes widened as the monkeys near him fell silent, staring. The silence fell on the rest of them like a ripple, and they all focused their beady eyes on his forehead. He reached up and felt his cap. A Cornerian flag was stitched into the plain fabric.

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Author Notes: Well, that took long enough, didn't it? It's hard to really come up with something to say after such a long period of not updating, so I'll just go ahead and give details to the next chapter. It takes place 8 years and 3 months after Command, and involves the first attack in the brewing war.

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